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Sales Is More Than Quoting An Order: Understanding Your Customer’s Buying Process

Sales Is More Than Quoting An Order: Understanding Your Customer’s Buying Process

Many manufacturers act as if the sales cycle starts when they have the opportunity to provide a quote. This can work well for distributors or firms that practice e-commerce. In those instances, the decision to buy can happen in mere minutes—even seconds. For most manufacturers, though, a sales transaction generally does not happen that quickly.…

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Competitor Analysis To Differentiate Your Business

Competitor Analysis To Differentiate Your Business

If you’re trying to grow a business, you know that it’s important to understand the market. Actually doing this might seem difficult, even overwhelming—but it doesn’t have to be. Over the past few posts, I’ve given you a step-by-step guide for making sense of each part of your market ecosystem: your company, your customers, and…

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Using Customer Interviews to Get Inside Your Customers’ Heads

Using Customer Interviews to Get Inside Your Customers’ Heads

Your business’s “sweet spot” helps you determine where your differentiating capabilities lie. It also helps you find which type of customers are the best fit for you. The customer evaluation chart described in the last post is a useful tool to understand your “sweet spot”—but it can be limiting in that your perspective is the…

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Using The Right Tools To Select Customers

Using The Right Tools To Select Customers

Last entry, we introduced the “3C Needs Map.” This chart helps you compare what you offer to what competitors offer and what customers want. The areas where the circles overlap reveal where your business’ “sweet spot” lies—and where, on the flip side, your competitors win out. The center of the chart shows the “table stakes,”…

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